Copy-holder



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1., T. J. HUME 8: J. F. GRESLEY.

COPY HOLDER- Patented 0013.22, 1895.

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T. J. HUME 8v J. P. GRESLBY. COPY HOLDER Patented Oct. 22,1895.

WIZ'JESSE 'S y ANDREW B GRAHAM. PNOW-LII'HU WAS WRETCH 0,0.

THOMAS J. HUME AND JOHN F. GRESLEY, OF ATOHISON, KANSAS.

COPY-HOLDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters IPatent No. 548,552, dated October 22, 1895.

Application filed May 13, 1895. Serial No. 549,173. (No model.)

To aZZ whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that we, THOMAS J. HUME and JOHN F. GRESLEY, of Atchison, in the county of Atchison and State of Kansas, have invent ed new and useful Improvements in Copy- Holders; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of said invention, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

Our invention relates to means for holding the manuscript or copy, such as stenographic notes or long hand or printed matter used by type-writer copyists; and the object of our invention is to produce a device adapted to conveniently hold any number of leaves of such matter, and which may be easily and quickly operated by the user to indicate or mark the succeeding lines of a leaf and to be then adjusted to the next leaf.

To these ends our invention consists in the construction and combination of parts, substantially as hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a front elevation of our copy-holder. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same from the left hand of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a rear elevation.

In all the figures similar reference letters are used to indicate the same parts.

The base board or plate A is provided at a point about midway of its length with two uprights a, which, as shown in the drawings, are the upturned ends of a strip of metal that is attached to the board across its center. Near the front end of the base-board is a stop for the operating key or lever, said step consisting, preferably, of a block of rubber a, and at the rear of the base-board is a support a for the copy-holding board when the latter is folded down parallel with the base-board to prepare the device for ready transportation.

The copy-holding board B is near its lower end pivotally supported by the uprights a and is adjustably supported at the desired inclination relatively to the base-board by means of a brace or leg 1), pivoted at its upper end to a lug or bracket 5', which is secured to the back of the board B near the upper end thereof. The lower end of the leg I? has a lateral pin 19*, adapted to enter any one of a series of holes a formed in the edge of the base-board A, and the leg I) is so attached to the bracket b or is so formed as to have a normal inward spring-pressure at the lower end, so as to insure the tendency of the pin 12 to remain in the hole in which it may be placed. This construction enables the entire device to be picked up and moved about without disarranging the adjustment of the inclination of the board B.

On the back of the board B are two ears 0 0, provided with holes which receive and guide the vertically-movable rod 0, a spring 0' being employed to move said rod upward and the key or lever-D serving to depress said rod, said lever D being pivoted to the baseboard, as at d, and passing through the slotted 0r bifurcated lower end of the red O and retained in said slot by a pin 61.

When the boards A and B are to be brought parallel to each other, the pin d is first removed and then it may be reinserted after folding.

Obviously, the spring 0' may be placed so as to depress the rod and the lever D constructed of adiiferent order, so as to raise the rod.

The cross-bar E, carrying the line-indicator and the feed-clutch, consists of a strip of metal fitted closely against the back of the board B and between it and the rod 0, said strip extending some distance beyond the sides of the board B and having its ends turned forward, as at e e. To these ends is pivoted the lineindicator F, which consists of a narrow strip of metal, the upper edge of which is held closely to the front of the board B or the manuscript thereon by means of a spring f. The lower edge of the line-indicator is inclined slightly away from the board B, so that said indicator will more readily ride up on the end of the release-key hereinafter described.

The cross-bar E is provided with two flat springs e e, which press against the edges of the board B to exert a steadying tension and prevent the said bar and its attachments from moving too easily or beyond the point desired.

Riveted to the back of the center of the bar E is a short vertical strip 6 having its ends bent outward and provided with holes to receive the rod C, said strip e serving to insure the constant proper relative positions of the rod 0 and the feed-clutch, which will now 'be' cess of the diameter of the rod G which passes through it, and the said arm G and bored block g constitute the clutch, by means of which the crossbar E and the line-indicator will be drawn by a step-by-step movement when the rod 0 is reciprocated, owing to the weight of the arm and block preventing'the' sides of the opening from engaging the sides of the rod whenthe latter is movingu pwain, but said sides engaging or biting 'when the' rod is moving downward.

A weight H is fitted to slide freely on the leg or brace h, and by means of a cordh, run} ning over pulleys h h, is connectedlwith the end of'a spring 9 which is attached to the cross-bar E and extends under the pin 9',

The spring 9 is normally in: the position shown in Fig. 3, a slight'space existingbe: tween itandthe pin 9, and is ofsuch strength as to exert the necessary tension on the cord h to elevate the weight when 'thecros's bar and clutch move downwardwithout saidpin g touching the spring; but whenever the cross-bar and line-indicator are to be'elevated a downward pull on the W'eig htwill first cause the end of spring g to take under the pin 9 and lift the clutch-armG until the' top edge' of.

the latter engages a stop-pin g set in the strip 6 This releases the clutch from the rod 0, and

f urther downward movement of the weight pullsthe cross-bar and line-indicator up as far as desired. It will now be seen that while the crossbar and its attachments are provided with a balance-weight, whichalso serves asa ready means for restoring the former to an; elevated position, yet the said balance-weight in no way interferes with the operation of the clutch.

When the cross-bar has been moved to its lowest possible position, the lower edge of the end of the clutch-arm G comes in contact with a stop-pin g set'in the back ofthe board."

A thumb-screw I, fitted to the lower ear'c above the key or lever D, serves to adjust the limit to'which the said key and the rod 0' may be elevated by the spring a, and thus serves as a means for adjusting the spacing.

A particular advantage, due to our arrangement and construction justdescribed, resides in the fact that without touching the key the line-indicator may be run down any distance by pulling down thereon and may be 'run'u'p by pulling down the weight, thus providing for quick changes in the position oftheindicator between Wide extremes in either direction."

We will now'describ'eour combined lower clamp and line-indicator release. This consists of a lever K, pivoted to an ear, which is secured to the face of the board B near its lower end. The lower end of the lever is preferably bifurcated or provided with two finger-keys-one each side of the operatingkey D- wherebythe said lever maybe easily operated by the right-hand finger or the left. This leverhas a spring 7c coiled about its fulcrurn-pin and attached, as shown, so that the upper end of the lever will be pressed toward the face of the board. The portion of the lever above" the pivot may be formed of two parts, slotted andoverlapping and adjustably connected together, so that the distance between the clamping end of the lever and the wire loop L at the top of the board may be ?varied to suit different lengths of paper held by the said loopLI Theupper end of the lefvejr K is pointed: or beveled, so thatthe line- :ind'icator Will'ride' up thereon, as hereinbe- ,foie 'rnention'ed,'when said indicator passes fdown below thefleaf'or sheet of manuscript.

When a stjeno graphic book' ofnotesis doubled over the loop L, theloweredge of the series will be clamped under the end ortip of the lever K, and thus said leaves cannot be blown upwardflbyagust ofair, and'w'h'e'n a leaf is ffinished with andthe line-indicator has passed below the leaf andionto the lever K a pressjureon the finger piece orfpieces of said lever immediately releases'the clamp and the lineindicator, so that with the other hand the operator'can quickly fold the finished'leaf, over thetop of the board; and since the li'ne-indicator remains above the end of the lever it is above the plane of, the next. leaf, s'othat a pullupon the weight will slide the line-indicator upwardw'ithout its catching upon the said leaf and curling it'over.

' Thegeneral operation of the partshaving been'describedid connection with the description oftheir construction a further or detail descriptionofithe operation is unneces- What we claim is 1. Acopy holder comprising in its construction a holder for the cop'y, alineindica'tor extending across thefront of the holder and havin'g'springs riding'along the edges thereof, a harjextending across 'the'rear of the holder and connect'edwith said line indicator, a balance weight connected with said bar, and means for moving said bar and line indicator step-by-step.

2. A copy holder comprising in its construction a holder for thecopy, said holder having a pulley near its upper end, a line indicator having means for moving itdownward with a step-by-step movement,'abalance weight, and a cord extending from the weight, 'over the pulley, to the line indicator, the said line indicator being downwardly movable independently of the feeding means.

3.. A copy holde'r comprising in its construction" a support forthe back of the leaf or leaves of paper, a lever clamp for the lower portions of the paper, and a line indicator movable downward over the lever clamp, whereby the release of the clamp is adapted to also release the line indicator or to keep it above the plane of the paper.

4. The combination with the holding board- B having means for holding leaves of paper by their upper ends, of the spring pressed line indicator having means for moving it downward and a spring pressed lever pivoted to the board near its lower end and having its clamping end beveled or pointed to permit the line indicator to ride thereon.

5. The combination with the holding board 13 having the vertically movable rod carried on the back thereof, of means for reciprocating said rod, a cross bar extending between the said board and rod and having a clutch adapted to be operated as the rod is reciprocated, and a line indicator consisting of a metal strip pivoted to the said cross-bar and extending across the front of said board and pressed toward said board by a suitable spring.

6. The combination with the board B of the brace or leg I), the weight H fitted to slide on said log, a movable line indicator on the board B and a cord running over suitable pulleys on the board and connecting the weight and indicator.

7. The combination with the holding board having the vertically movable rod C, of the cross-bar E carrying the spring 9 and stop 9 the arm G pivoted to the bar E and having the clutch block g, and pin g, and a weight connected by a cord running over a pulley with the arm G.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures in presence of two subscribing witnesses THOMAS J. HUME. JOHN F. GRESLEY. Witnesses:

O. W. DRUMMOND, H. H. DAVIS. 

